This early, classic effort from Jackie Chan is a film impossible to dislike. Like most of his early work, it's a comedy-cum-kung fu movie with near constant action and never a boring moment. The plot is lightweight stuff which allows for plenty of fighting techniques and all kinds of stunts and incredible manoeuvres that have to be seen to be believed. Beautifully shot, with skilled performers, and choreographed by the masterful Yuen Woo-ping, DRUNKEN MASTER is the epitome of Hong Kong martial arts comedy and a real masterpiece.

Jackie Chan takes on the role of the rebellious, somewhat cocky student who finds himself caught up in fights wherever he goes. Whether he's attempting to score a date with a hot chick or helping in the fight against a robber, he always comes off the worse in the eyes of his father, the man who helped train him. Disgusted by his son's dishonourable activities, the father banishes Jackie to the care of his bizarre uncle, Sam the Seed. Sam is an elderly gentleman who has perfected the art of the "eight drunk gods". But before Jackie can learn any of this, he's put through some of the most rigorous and impressive training techniques yet. All manner of balancing stunts, incredible press-ups and strenuous exercises follow. The finale concerns Jackie learning the art of drunken fighting and going up against an assassin hired to kill his own father.

Despite the predictable plot this is entertainment that never lets up. Chan is on top form here, his skills as both an actor and acrobat coming to light in the often superhumanly fast and strong moves that he pulls. Chan is supported by a skilled cast, not least Siu Tien Yuen who excels as Sam the Seed, a real oddity of a character who you end up loving. Then there are the familiar martial arts turning up to take turns fighting Chan. Hwang Jang Lee takes the role of a cold, skilled assassin who goes gunning for Chan whilst minor heavies include Casanova Wong and Bolo Yeung, the latter playing the part of a chef named Gorilla!

The comedy is plentiful in this movie and most of it is in the childish, slapstick style that the Chinese enjoy. But where the film scores most is in the various fights, which mix visual jokes and japes with genuinely skilled martial arts to great effect. My favourite scene is where Chan takes on a guy with an iron head and ends up beating him senseless with a mallet - hilarious stuff. Other battles to watch out for include the extended bout with a guy who calls himself Lord of the Sticks and the fight in the restaurant with Bolo Yeung's HUGE bad guy Gorilla.

Of course the best is saved for last and there's a long, taut, sweaty and exciting showdown between Chan and the assassin, which really puts both artists through their paces and is edge of the seat stuff. The non-stop action, funny comedy and skilled performers make DRUNKEN MASTER a Hong Kong classic for any collection.

Coming direct to you from the Three Stooges School of Inebriated Martial Arts is this film - "Drunken Master", which I understand is the picture that catapulted Jackie Chan to the heights of kung fu and movie stardom. Granted, the film has some exceptional martial arts choreography, but at the same time, that might be one of the movie's downsides, as it's so deliberate and precise that it makes the fighting look fake. No question as to Jackie's athleticism, as the acrobatics and stamina required to pull off so many of the stunts is nothing short of exceptional. Story wise, it's a lot of the same with these Seventies era kung fu flicks, though I'm no expert in these matters, and merely take one in every now and then to gain some perspective on the genre. I got a kick out of some of the character names like Rat, the Iron-Headed Bullet and the King of Bamboo, along with some of the martial art moves taught by Beggar So (Siu Tin Yuen) to Wong Fei-Hung (Chan). My favorite was 'fat old woman on toilet'; try erasing that mental picture from your head. Mostly, the silliness of it all took me out of the picture which accounts for my low score, but if you're a Jackie Chan fan, you probably owe it to yourself to check this one out. Best to keep in mind Beggar So's advice to Wong Fei-Hung though - "It looks real enough, yet it isn't".

Fei-hung Wong, renamed Freddy in the subtitles of the DVD I watched, is the son of the master of a Kung-Fu school; he is also a bit of a trouble maker. After one incident too many his father is so angry that he threatens to beat his son to death! His aunt has another idea; Freddy should spend a year with his uncle; a Kung-Fu master known as Beggar So. Freddy has heard of his uncle's brutal methods so tries to flee. He gets caught up in a fight when he can't pay at a restaurant but is helped by a drunken old man… inevitably this is Beggar So. Freddy starts his training and it is indeed gruelling. So gruelling that he runs away. He crosses paths with an assassin called Thunderfoot who beats him so comprehensively that he returns to finish his training; finally learning the 'Eight Drunken Gods' technique. While this is going on Freddy's father has upset a powerful figure who has hired Thunderfoot to kill him. If he is to survive Freddy will have to show that he now has the requisite skills to stop Thunderfoot.

This classic martial arts film still feels fresh almost forty years after it was made. There is a lot of impressively choreographed action which contains a high degree of slap-stick. The comedy moments are laugh out loud funny. The story is fairly predictable but that doesn't matter as it is only there to give us a near constant stream of action and/or comedy; the drunken fighting is particularly funny, especially the 'Drunken Goddess'. Jackie Chan does a great job as Freddy; he manages the action and comedy with equal aplomb. He is ably supported by Yuen Siu-tien as the very funny Beggar So. Hwang Jang Lee is fun as Thunderfoot… largely due to his very '70s look! Overall I'd certainly recommend this to martial arts fans; it may not be brutal and gritty but it is very funny.

These comments are based on watching the film in Cantonese with English subtitles.